About Skillful Hands CIC
Hair education can be a starting point for confidence, connection, creativity and opportunity.
What we do
Skillful Hands CIC uses practical hair skills to create welcoming spaces for learning, meaningful conversations and personal development.
Our programmes bring together hands-on learning, wellbeing, relationships, confidence, life skills and future opportunities, creating spaces where young people and adults can learn, connect and talk without judgement.
What happens around the hair activity is much bigger.
Explore programmesOur mission
To use practical hair skills as an engagement tool to create welcoming, non-judgemental spaces where young people and adults can learn, connect and have meaningful conversations.
Through hands-on learning, we support confidence, wellbeing, relationships, transferable skills and access to future opportunities.
Our vision
We want to see communities where young people and adults feel heard, valued, connected and confident about their future.
Skillful Hands demonstrates how practical and culturally relevant approaches can engage people differently, creating spaces where skills are developed, conversations happen naturally and communities have a voice.
Our values
Our programmes are shaped by practical learning, inclusion and respect for every person’s potential.
Creating spaces where people feel comfortable learning, talking and asking questions.
Listening to lived experience and allowing participants and communities to help shape our work.
Recognising different barriers and opportunities while keeping programmes inclusive.
Creating opportunities to learn together, build relationships and strengthen belonging.
Recognising that not everybody learns or engages best in a traditional classroom.
Focusing on people’s potential and where they can go next.
Using participant feedback and programme outcomes to continuously improve our work.
Meet the founder
Founder, Skillful Hands CIC
Monique's journey into community work began in sexual health education, where she learned the importance of creating spaces where people feel safe enough to ask questions, share experiences and have conversations without judgement.
Through years of community engagement and youth work across Canada and the UK, she recognised something powerful about hair and salon spaces: conversation happens naturally when people are doing hair. People talk about relationships, health, family, confidence, identity, work and everyday life.
That idea became part of the foundation for Skillful Hands. Monique created Skillful Hands to use practical hair activities as an engagement tool, bringing people together to learn while creating space for conversations, confidence, connection and personal development.
Sometimes the best conversations happen when your hands are busy.
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